Hi all,

  I manage a large area that includes a very popular RV park area. For a majority of the year we are at 100% occupancy, meaning we service a lot of guests. A majority of our guests are full time campers who float from site to site in my region, average stay with us is about a month. Currently we do not offer a ton of amenities outside the basics but we do maintain a restaurant in the general area - <1 away from the park. As someone who spent a lot of their career as a chef I think we are missing an opportunity to provide a great food and beverage experience for breakfast, lunch and an early dinner to the people who stay with us at the park. I'm in a great operating position because my prices are extremely competitive and in reality when you spend the time to get groceries, prep/cook, clean up I can probably come close to that cost of time and money the camper incurs.

   So, what I am looking to create is a meal plan to offer our RV park guests. My initial thought is to offer a punch card type system where a camper can buy punches as they check in, then visit the restaurant when maybe they don't want to cook, are looking for a little more interaction with people, or just want to grab a beer. 1 punch equals a meal and non alcoholic drink minus tip type deal. As someone who loves camping but has never RV camped I'm having trouble putting myself in your shoes to figure out what makes sense for someone who lives this lifestyle. I was hoping the knowledgeable people here could spit ball a few pressure point ideas that would be important to someone living like this. To me for example, I would think after a while you might seek out interactions with people who might not be your temporary neighbors. Or maybe, you're tired of having to prep/clean up after meals so a meal plan would be a great solution to that. At any rate, any suggestions to help me make a successful service would be great and I would appreciate it. Thank you.

Matt  

I would not buy a punch card. I would pay cash for meals. In the membership park to which I used to belong, I often went down for meals. But, they were served within the park. If I had to drive a mile or so I would not have gone as I traveled in a custom conversion van so would have had to drive my whole house to the eatery. I did do that occasionally to meet up with friends for a meal but I would not do it nearly as often as I went to eat in the park.

Linda Sand

ps. The meals in the park were simple affairs like scrambled eggs with biscuits and gravy  at breakfast then sandwiches with chips or chicken strips and fries for happy hour. That kept them truly affordable which made it easy to justify getting them.

Thanks for the feedback Linda. I would say you could walk to the restaurant or very easily take a bike there. The walk actually might be nice after eating, the area is beautiful. My plan on the punches would be to discount them to the point that you're getting your meals for at least a few bucks an item cheaper than ordering off the menu, so there would be a financial incentive to buy the punches.

So you think if I set up a station - maybe a flattop for a cooking apparatus  - and set up chaffers within the RV park and charged a nominal fee for this - $5 per person range-ish - this would be something that would interest you? Thanks again for the feedback.

I'm with Linda. If it's a convenient walk from the house (as in on my way in or out of the park) I would be more inclined to swing by to pick up a bite and would prefer paying cash as I go. I won't prepay for something I may or may not be inclined to take advantage of... even to save a buck or two. You "could" always offer both pay options.

If I have to drive somewhere and do a "sit down" then it's really no different than going anywhere else. You loose the convenience factor... which would be the largest attraction to trying to pick up some additional business, IMHO. If I'm going to drive 1 mile to go out to eat I'll drive 10 or more to get what sounds best at that particular moment. We're RV'ers... we don't mind driving.  If I've had a busy day I just as soon have a cold one and piddle around the kitchen as the mood strikes.

Personally, I enjoy cooking to my own tastes and eating at home. It's part of my daily "wind-up/wind-down" ritual, however, if you were to offer a daily "blue plate" special (or 2) of a local cuisine or recipe I am always up to try new things and would be attracted to something like that. Ie., local take on biscuits and gravy from locally sourced saugage, "aunt/uncle so and so's" homemade chili or chowder, fresh bread/butter/jam/cheese, locally picked fruits... and who isn't up for fresh grilled whatnots n' veggies? The biggest lure for me would be a "local" flavor and sourced products or something I wouldn't normally take the time and effort to make at home. Ie., slow cooking oven dishes or baked foods.

A full menu isn't really desireable, to me. For those watching what they eat... maybe a "light" and "full meal" plate (?). If it's convenient, smells great and has a local twist to it... I'll eat whatever you happen to be serving that day. "Sit down" also isn't all that important to me. If I can get in line with a paper plate/bowl and head back to the house to leisurely sit around with a few friends and make an evening of it... all the more attractive.

Other opinions may vary... but my plug nickel, nonetheless.

  On 4/15/2018 at 3:43 AM, Matt J said:

...or just want to grab a beer...  

Welcome to the Escapees Forum!!!

One of the things that we and some of our Rving friends like to do is sample the local craft beers. In some states, the breweries can not serve food and many others choose not to operating a tasting room much like a local bar. We prefer to eat as we sample the local beers so we visit the ones that serve food or pubs that feature the product of nearby breweries. If available, we like to try a sample or a flight.

Again, Welcome to the Escapees Forum!!!

  On 4/15/2018 at 4:58 AM, Matt J said:

So you think if I set up a station - maybe a flattop for a cooking apparatus  - and set up chaffers within the RV park and charged a nominal fee for this - $5 per person range-ish - this would be something that would interest you?

While this might attract some travelers, I think that it would need to be well under the going prices in nearby restaurants to attract very many. But if the offering is really a bargain it might be supported. We do occasionally eat at an in-park meal offering but not often. 

Thanks for taking the time to respond all, really appreciate it. I'll have to think about it more. The good news is when I was working in the kitchen I worked for a Chef who was chasing James Beard awards, we had 3 nominees best chef Pacific when I worked for him. So, rest assured the food expectation I have with the Chef who works for me is very high and he is hands down awesome. We're also located in San Diego, so the craft beer scene is as good as it gets and it's something we definitely offer. I'll have to put the hamster between my ears on it a little more. I think there is an opportunity to make some people really happy, I just need to figure out the WIIFM for them. Thanks again.

We wintered in a park in AZ that offered Sat morning breakfast in the clubhouse for $3 per person.  What was served changed weekly.  We never went.  Too much of a hassle to go.  Easier to sit at home in our pj's sipping coffee and fix whatever when the mood strikes/.    As far as dinner we rarely go out unless going with a group of friends.

We were recently at a park in Texas that offered meals but only on the weekends. We only tried one meal while there and that was a complementary breakfast on Easter morning. I was not impressed and if it was a sample of the food that would have been $8 or $9 dollars a plate I would never go.

What I have seen is a number of parks that are teamed up with a pizza chain, either having one in the park or nearby, that will deliver right to your site. That could be a format that would work. 

Personally, as expensive as some parks have gotten for the nightly fees, I am not inclined to give them any more of my money for meals when I can cook them for far less myself.

Part of the answer to your question is what market of RV customers do you serve? If your park is mostly used by people traveling in the more luxury class of RV, a restaurant might be well accepted, especially one with the sort of food that you describe. But if your clientele now is mostly families that travel on a budget, then you might have difficulty in attracting customers from the park. Parks that attract mostly retired people would likely fall somewhere in between. Most of us go out to eat fairly frequently but very few do so more than a few times per week. 

A few years ago we stayed at a campground in Arco, ID that had a small onsite restaurant.  They had free pancake breakfasts with bacon, eggs, etc. at additional cost.  Also were open for dinner with a limited menu.  We were there 2 weeks and enjoyed breakfast most mornings and dinner a few times.  Unfortunately they don't seem to have the free breakfasts anymore.

It was nice to walk a short distance to get a good meal but really was more of an added feature, IOW wouldn't plan a stay there just for the  food.

  On 4/16/2018 at 1:48 AM, folivier said:

A few years ago we stayed at a campground in Arco, ID that had a small onsite restaurant.  They had free pancake breakfasts with bacon, eggs, etc. at additional cost.  Also were open for dinner with a limited menu.  We were there 2 weeks and enjoyed breakfast most mornings and dinner a few times.  Unfortunately they don't seem to have the free breakfasts anymore.

It was nice to walk a short distance to get a good meal but really was more of an added feature, IOW wouldn't plan a stay there just for the  food.

So , just the pancakes were free? 

  On 4/16/2018 at 1:48 AM, folivier said:

It was nice to walk a short distance to get a good meal but really was more of an added feature, IOW wouldn't plan a stay there just for the  food.

There's a campground along our spring/fall migration route that has a small onsite restaurant. If we stopped there overnight we went to dinner at the restaurant. But we didn't time our travels to stop there. We did occasionally time our stops at a Cracker Barrel restaurant that allowed overnight stays so we could eat there. It's nice to not have to cook/clean up on travel days.

Linda Sand

I was from San Diego before I went full time. What is the name of the RV Park you are in and the name of the restaurant?

I travel alone and make most of my own meals to save money. I do occasionally go out  to shake off the cabin fever. I would not pre pay or buy coupons or meal tickets in advance. We RV and live on wheels and may leave at a moments notice.

 I think that if you offered inexpensive meals ie: a discount to anyone who is in your nearby RV Camp Ground it may work. Say something like meat loaf Monday, taco Tuesday, Spaghetti Wed, fried chicken Thurs, and fish and chips Fri. You could keep your costs down by having a special every night. My grandparents owned a restaurant and did this. The same for lunch and breakfast. Pancake Mon, breakfast burrito Tue you get the idea. 

Forgot to say, one time traveling thru TX I looked for a place to stop for just one night in Fort Stockton. Was referred to a place that was formerly a KOA but had changed management. The RV Park was well know for the restaurant inside the park. It was very convent to stop there for onenight and not have to unhitch and go look for an unknown place in an unknown area to have dinner. Didn’t want to pull everything out to make my own dinner.  You could promote your walking distance diner for those one night guests.